Splash Mountain re-theme announced

[Oskar]

Not really... Disneyland has limited space to keep building.

For Disney World, everyone in this thread - even people who love Splash collectively understand that the ride is based on a controversial movie. Many people in this thread are comfortable ignoring that history because they have emotional attachments to the ride or hate change within the parks. But on the other side, you have people who aren't okay with that and Disney understands that.

Disney understands that the parks shouldn't make people uncomfortable, even if it a loosely themed ride based on a movie many people haven't seen. They know its origins and it reflects poorly if they do nothing.

I wasn’t talking about Disneyland in this instance.

They’ve made their decision regarding Splash Mountain, it’s understandable and hopefully we get a replacement that is comparable in terms of content and quality.

But updating the parks doesn’t always need to equate to replacing other existing classic attractions. We could have gotten the Mickey Mouse attraction at DHS, which is in desperate need of new attractions, without losing the Great Movie Ride, which could have been updated alongside adding the new Mickey Mouse attraction. Disney have this mindset where to update mean to replace rather than add and it’s not the right one.

 

[21stamps]

Nah. It’s always been a melting pot of Americana. Tom Sawyer is set in Mississippi. Splash Mountain in the south.

Princess and the Frog will fit in just fine. Especially with that riverboat floating by.

How long do you think Tom Sawyer’s Island will survive?

 

[bryanfze55]

You almost sound...whats the word...progressive(which somehow is a bad word for some people)!

How about you define “progressive” before making that assumption? Woodrow Wilson was a “progressive” and also very much a racist.

 

[ImperfectPixie]

Well if you can't explain, then it will never be. My position on older rides being upgraded constantly is not specific to Splash.

These parks have to appeal to the masses not just die hard guest.

Part of what makes WDW and DL so wonderful is that adults get to bring their children there and share their own childhood memories with them. They are removing this aspect from the parks bit by bit, and it WILL affect the parks' popularity. Disney is slowly but surely becoming another theme park in which parents stand aside while their children enjoy the attractions...and that is the polar opposite of Walt's intent.

Also, part of why people are so upset about this is because Disney is known for NOT replacing things with equal quality. MMRR is cute, but it doesn't hold a candle to GMR. Frozen Ever After is a book report with a couple of nice AAs...there isn't even really much to look at. Journey into Imagination is a travesty. Backlot Tour? Oh yeah...there was zero replacement for that one.

The Brer characters and stories are from African folklore, and have been adapted all over the world in 14 different languages. Georgia Encyclopedia The animated stories with these characters aren't racist - the over-arching, live-action background story used to connect them together is what is the problem, and there is no reference to any of it in the attraction. The Brer stories themselves, stand on their own.

So its okay to keep things loosely based in historical racism just because its no well known?

I know black people to this day who won't stay at Port Orleans Riverside because the plantation theme still bothers them today despite disney cleaning up the backstory.

It's not "plantation-themed". It's several styles of architecture...Georgian, Neo-classical, and Greek Revival. I live in New England and there are houses here built in those styles.

 

[Magicart87]

How long do you think Tom Sawyer’s Island will survive?

It's had multiple plans drawn up for it's demise/replacement. I give it till 2030. I'm sure they're weighing their options right now.
Although, I'm actually OK with it's removal. Not a real loss for the typical park guest. If anything that's another plot for an attraction or 3.
I think the bigger issues for MK now will be what to do with (hypothetical) landlocked Riverboat and Big Thunder's now disharmonious theme.

 

[_caleb]

And if people seeing this don't see the obvious...(almost immediately after a petition from an outsider with an idea for PatF replacing SM, an announcement is made that Disney is doing JUST THAT)

Like you said, they have no budget for projects that NEED to be finished (EPCOT entrance and spine)
NEED reimagining (Journey into Imagination)
NEED to be created (Stitch)
NEED to be finished (WDW Railroad/Tron..)

And all the cast members who were furloughed, and 3 months of no money coming into the parks...after all that, they STILL thought this should be a priority?! And the timing of it.. yeah, we're excited to finally announce this project we've been developing for a year. Coincidentally, whoever started that petition must have a sixth sense, because we've been working on JUST THAT, a PatF overlay! Wow, you should've played the lottery that day!

Maybe Disney *was actually working on this for a long time now, the guy had a similar idea (because a PatF overlay makes sense to a lot of people), *and Disney saw the current social climate as an opportune moment to make a decision and announcement? And maybe Disney sees this move as so important to their public image and future that they made it a priority?

 

[thomas998]

Name the author of the stories Song of the South is based on? Who cashed Walt Disney's check?

This guy.

Folktales have no known author, they are just handed down orally to start with or do you think the person that simply put them into written form magically became the creator.

 

[_caleb]

Here is how it works: The minority can voice their concerns/issues to the majority and then the majority decides whether they think a change is warranted. Unfortunately, the majority didn't get to decide in this case. Hence tyranny of the minority.

Are we still talking about Disney World?

 

[lebeau]

Folktales have no known author, they are just handed down orally to start with or do you think the person that simply put them into written form magically became the creator.

He's the one credited.

 

[Touchdown]

Man, you sure to have a lot of issues and problems to take. Maybe, just maybe, the problem is not everyone else's artwork?

Funny, I really like Splash Mountain, it’s my favorite MK ride and I’m extremely worried about a redo (and secretly hoping it doesn’t happen.) I own physical copies of every movie I’ve mentioned (except Bagger Vance that movie was terrible) and enjoy them except SotS. I just happen to have gone through a liberal arts education and know a thing or two about storytelling tropes.

To get back on Splash Mountain, I’m white. I’ve never watched SotS because enough people have told me it’s racist and a bad film outside of the animated segments, so I have no desire. I thought the ride did a good job of removing the racist portions but as a white man my opinion doesn’t count for much.

I would argue that if Disney was serious about correcting all of its past wrongs, they would allow SotS to enter the public domain so that society could fairly discuss it, but it’s not going to do that it’s going to do what it always does, wallpaper over any bad segments of its history.

Just wait 30 years from now Aladdin and Tarzan will join the blacklist, Dumbo and Peter Pan will be added sooner then that. The problem is amnesia is not the correct way to address racism in this country.

 

[MisterPenguin]

There seems to be a variance here between, if I'm reading these posts correctly:

A) Design work hasn't started...

Disney has not yet completed the design phase on this, so nothing has leaked at this point. This project seems a while away from being started.

B) And design is pretty much done...

Tony is being polite. The ride changes are already designed.

So done that one can say what currently exists now has to be changed....

There are no insiders saying what you've stated. It's a provable lie. Splash mountain literally just had a new track installed that will have to be adjusted yet again because it wasn't designed for the incoming alterations.

 

[OrlandoRising]

There are no insiders saying what you've stated. It's a provable lie. Splash mountain literally just had a new track installed that will have to be adjusted yet again because it wasn't designed for the incoming alterations.

Good thing you’re not a real insider then.

 

[_caleb]

Not sure about Haunted but you can bet your bottom dollar that this is not the end. The pain is just beginning though I'm sure the woke folks are out on the streets singing zip a dee doo dah right about now!

You should actually go out into the streets and listen. No one is singing Zip-a-dee-doo-dah.

 

[Phicinfan]

Ok, I am a bad guy and have not read the whole thread....
So if some of my questions were covered, bear with me, I am traveling for work again, so have very little time and access.

First - I am not surprised this happened, look at all the statues and other things being torn down. That being said, I don't believe for one minute this was a knee jerk reaction, this looks and smells like its been in the works for a bit, and they were just waiting for pressure to make the move. If this is not correct, feel free to let me know.

Secondly - thematically it CAN fit, I am pretty sure the movie was based in the roaring 20s and 30s, so if they also add some old time New Orleans to frontier land, maybe re-theme a restaurant to what was going to go into Reflections.... it could fit okay, but not be ideal.

This is another step in showing Disney will move on from traditional to new - look at GMR, Energy. I am really starting to wonder again about the future of SM.

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

I wasn’t talking about Disneyland in this instance.

They’ve made their decision regarding Splash Mountain, it’s understandable and hopefully we get a replacement that is comparable in terms of content and quality.

But updating the parks doesn’t always need to equate to replacing existing classic attractions. We could have gotten the Mickey Mouse attraction at DHS, which is in desperate need of new attractions, without losing the Great Movie Ride, which could have been updated alongside adding the new Mickey Mouse attraction. Disney have this mindset where to update mean to replace rather than add and it’s not the right one.

So do you think Disney should never change older rides? You think we should still have opening day MK with a handful of new rides squeezed in?

Many of us on here are disney fanatics. The average disney guest doesn't get excited or attached to the peoplemover or COP like we do. They want new and more current attractions.

Take someone who has never been to disney and make them watch CBJ... they generally have a "wth" face the either time. Disney understands that too. They have to keep the parks fresh and give the average disney guest a reason to come - they already have our money. They know us crazies are going to the parks no matter what.

 

[orlandogal22]

How long do you think Tom Sawyer’s Island will survive?

It will be a sad day when TSI is gone. I'm sure Swiss Family Treehouse will be gone too (or reimagined) in the near future.

I adore both and it won't be the same w/out the originals.

 

[SteamboatJoe]

I am glad Princess and the Frog is getting an attraction. Great representation. Great songs. Great visuals. The last traditional feature animation film for Disney to date.

I am sad Splash Mountain has to go away. Fun memories for me. And, superficially speaking, fun songs, fun visuals, and the best storytelling work of any Disney attraction, past or present.

 

[MickeyMouse10]

Have you seen the backlash people in these forums had when GMR was closed? You would think it was the best thing since sliced bread. lol

I'm actually one of the GMR lovers. I wish Disney didn't get rid of it (or Maelstrom), but I completely understand why they did. Rides that don't make enough money for them will be eliminated without prejudice or thought to the hardcore fans.

I just think their placement of IP's are suspect. Mickey's Runaway Railway and Frozen Ever After are good rides, but they should have been placed better. We don't have to lose something to get something, unless it's something horrible like the Backlot Tour.

 

[Club Cooloholic]

How about you define “progressive” before making that assumption? Woodrow Wilson was a “progressive” and also very much a racist.

Oh, you want to use examples of who and what was considered progressive 80 years ago and that it what, must stay static and never evolve? Sorry but that would be conservative not progressive. Allowing two people that aren't married to share a hotel room was at one point a "progressive" way of thinking, thinking evolves though, thus the point of being progressive.

 

[Club Cooloholic]

How long do you think Tom Sawyer’s Island will survive?

Have you been there the past few years? I think it died already, it seems WDW has forgotten its even there beyond operating the rafts.